


Family Ties

by blueberrynewt



Series: Experiments in Terra [2]
Category: Galactica 1980
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2020-01-24 10:13:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18569302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blueberrynewt/pseuds/blueberrynewt
Summary: Memories, fluff, and domestic life for the Brown/Adams/Hamilton family, many years later. 25 years post-Wildflowers. Also a prequel of sorts to the next story I have planned for this family, which will feature some characters you meet here for the first time.





	Family Ties

Troy woke first. That had been unusual, once: he remembered countless mornings when Dillon and Jamie had needed to wheedle and coax him out from under the covers, or when Lip and Starla had decided that the best way to rouse him would be to barge in and jump on the bed. But as he grew older, Troy found he needed less sleep than he used to, and these days it wasn’t uncommon for him to be wide awake long before the others.

Extricating himself from the covers as gently as he could, so as not to disturb the slumbering forms on either side of him, Troy rose, stepped into his slippers, and went out into the kitchen. The dogs woke at the sound of his footsteps and crowded around him as he measured out coffee grounds and plugged in the pot.

When his coffee was ready, Troy poured it into his mug and screwed on the lid, then collected the dogs’ leashes and the pack of doggie bags. Trading his slippers for shoes and shrugging on a flannel shirt, he clipped all three dogs onto their leashes and opened the door. Winnie was first outside as usual, whining eagerly and pulling at her leash. Percy and Ella, both older and more sedate, followed at a more dignified pace, and Troy stepped out after them and shut the door.

The sun had not yet risen. Troy sipped his coffee and let the dogs sniff and wander, in no great hurry to be anywhere. After a while, they reached the park, and Troy stopped to throw away three full doggie bags before settling himself on a bench. He unclipped the dogs and turned them loose to tussle on the grass nearby, then leaned back to watch the sky lighten from grey to pink.

By the time he finished his coffee, the sun had risen fully, and its early rays wreathed trees and buildings in a pale golden glow. Troy got to his feet and called the dogs to him, leashing them again and turning toward home. Other people had started to arrive at the park by now, many with dogs of their own, and several of them called out to Troy or raised a hand in greeting and recognition.

Back home, Jamie and Dillon had awoken. Jamie sat at the table and scanned the morning headlines, while Dillon set about making oatmeal. Both looked up and smiled when Troy came inside, his entourage crowding around his ankles, and went to the cupboard for dog food.

“When are the kids arriving?” Dillon asked, dicing an apple.

Jamie picked up her phone and consulted it. “Starla said probably early afternoon. They’re driving down from Big Sur, though, so it all depends on how early they can get the kids going and what traffic is like on the 101.”

“Oh, I remember what it’s like to try to make children pack up camp in the morning.” Dillon smiled. “It’s nice that they still go to that place. I wish we could have joined them.”

“Me, too.” Jamie turned a page. “Who knew retirement would be so busy?”

“It might be less busy if you actually retired,” Dillon replied. Jamie had officially retired the year before, but couldn’t resist picking up stories whenever UBC found itself with more news than reporters — which was most of the time these days, with a high-stakes presidential election looming a few months away.

Thinking about the upcoming election, Troy glanced at the calendar as he stood up from feeding the dogs, and a smile crossed his face. “Hey,” he said. “Happy anniversary, you two.”

“Felgercarb!” Dillon yelped and dropped a spoon into the pot. “I completely forgot. What am I doing making oatmeal? We can’t eat oatmeal for our twenty-fifth anniversary.”

Troy laughed. “Why not? We all like oatmeal. Unless you’ve been lying to us all these years.” He moved to stand beside Dillon at the stove, and kissed his cheek.

“Well, no, but…” Dillon gestured at the pot. “It’s just not very festive.”

“Just put some sprinkles on top and stick a candle in it, or something,” Jamie advised, standing and coming up behind them. She put an arm around each of their waists. “Happy anniversary, loves.”

 

***

 

That afternoon, Troy was in the backyard, playing with the dogs. He found a good stick and tossed it, sending all three dogs hurtling after it, then turned as he heard the back door slide open.

“Starla!” Forgetting the dogs momentarily, he hurried onto the deck to hug his daughter. She grinned and hugged him back.

“It’s good to see you, Dad. Where are Mom and Papa?”

“Oh, last-minute grocery emergency. Jamie made Dillon go along to help pick out the wine, so I generously volunteered to stay home in case you arrived while they were gone.”

Starla laughed. “Well, thank you. I know grocery shopping with Mom when guests are coming is one of your favorite activities. It’s very noble of you to stay here to welcome us.”

Troy was about to reply, but was interrupted as the back door slid open again with a crash and two small forms barreled into his legs, yelling, “Granddad!”

“Hi, girls.” Troy knelt down and hugged them, then shifted his arms so that when he stood, he had one granddaughter in each arm, both of them clinging to his neck. “This is getting harder,” he remarked. “Either you two are growing up, or I’m getting feeble in my old age.”

“We’re growing up,” confirmed Amy, while Lucy exclaimed, “Both!”

Troy laughed and bounced Lucy. “Both, huh?” He raised his eyebrows at Starla. “I should keep her around, she might keep my ego in check.” He set the girls down and let them go play with the dogs.

Starla nudged him, grinning. “Come on, you’re not old. Boomer’s got a few decades on you and he’s still going strong.”

“Are you telling me I’m not allowed to complain about my aching old bones yet?”

“Give it a few more years.” Starla glanced over. “Oh, by the way, Leo and Nat should be here soon. They had to make a pit stop in Santa Barbara.”

“Yeah, he texted.” Troy tapped the pocket that held his phone, then belatedly remembered his manners. “Are you three hungry? Our fridge is full to bursting, I’m sure we could find something for lunch.”

“Hm.” Starla pursed her lips and pulled out her phone. “Let’s see how long Leo will be. I think we can wait a little longer, and it would be nice to eat all together.” She typed a few letters, and a few seconds later, her phone chirped with a response. “He says twenty minutes or so,” she told him. “Why don’t we wait?”

They moved to the front yard, bringing the girls and dogs with them. Ten minutes later, Jamie’s car pulled into the driveway and she and Dillon emerged, Dillon carrying a bulging bag of groceries. They shouted a greeting and came over, and Dillon set down his burden in order to dole out hugs.

They were in the kitchen, putting groceries away and pulling out ingredients for lunch, when Lip’s car pulled up outside. Troy opened the door and went down the front steps, hugging first Lip, then Lip’s wife, Natalia, then kneeling down to greet little Perrin.

“How’s my favorite grandson?” he asked, leaning back to study the grinning five-year-old. Perrin crossed his arms.

“I’m your _only_ grandson,” he pointed out.

“And you’re our favorite, too!” Dillon put in, squatting beside Troy and poking Perrin in the chest. “Now, isn’t that a coincidence? C’mere,” he added, opening his arms. Perrin trotted forward and Dillon scooped him up and swung him around, whooping.

They ate lunch in the backyard. Jamie, true to form, seemed to have gotten every possible ingredient that anyone could conceivably want in a sandwich, as well as chips, cookies, and lemonade, and there was several times more food than the nine of them could eat in one sitting. The dogs nosed around for scraps, and the adults were hard put to prevent the kids from feeding them whole slices of ham and turkey under the table. When everyone was finally full, the kids got up to run around with the dogs, while the adults lingered over their lemonade.

“Happy anniversary, all of you,” Lip said, reaching for another cookie and raising his glass to his adoptive parents. Starla and Natalia echoed the sentiment, and Troy, Dillon, and Jamie smiled in return.

“Twenty-five years, huh?” mused Natalia. “That’s pretty good.”

“Since our very first date,” Jamie agreed. She nudged Troy with her knee. “Remember that day?”

“Couldn’t forget it,” he replied, squeezing her hand.

“That was quite a day for you, wasn’t it?” said Dillon. “Didn't you graduate from fire academy the very next day? I don’t know how you coped with it all.”

Troy shrugged. “With everything going on around that time, I think I was just grateful to have some things to look forward to.”

 

***

 

In the evening, the adults sat around the living room. The three children had already been put to bed in Starla’s old room, and were supposed to be going to sleep, though no one really expected them to sleep anytime soon. Their parents and grandparents arranged themselves around the room with cups of tea and talked about books and presidential candidates and growing up.

At a lull in the conversation, Jamie excused herself to use the restroom. Troy got up too, and moved to the computer desk. Turning on the computer, he pulled up a news website and perused the headlines. After a moment, he called out in excitement.

“Dillon! Take a look at this.”

Dillon got up and came to read over Troy’s shoulder. As he read, a broad grin covered his face.

“Gay marriage is legal in California!” he announced to the room, eliciting a round of applause from Starla, Lip, and Natalia. He put a hand on Troy’s shoulder. “Hey, wanna get married?”

“What, without Jamie?” Troy responded, looking around and raising an eyebrow at Dillon. Jamie, returning from the bathroom, looked over at the sound of her name.

“What are you doing without me?” she asked.

“Getting married.” Dillon grinned at her.

Troy smiled and patted Dillon’s hand. “California just legalized gay marriage,” he explained, “and Dillon’s feeling celebratory. But I don’t think the government’s open-mindedness extends as far as three-way marriages just yet.”

Jamie clapped her hands at the news. “Oh, that’s wonderful!” She paused, musing. “Huh. So now any pair of us could get married, but someone has to be left out. That’s no good.”

“No,” Troy agreed. “I think we’re better off with an unofficial but equitable marriage than a lopsided legal one.”

“Ah,” sighed Dillon. “It would’ve been fun. But you’re right. Besides,” he added, “I bet there are couples all over the state lining up for marriage licenses already. We might have to wait in line for days.” He paused a moment, then his face brightened. “Hey! Let’s call Boomer and Eric! We know they want to get married.”

“Good idea.” Troy pulled out his phone. “That way we still get to go to at least one wedding.”

“Do you think they’ll have crab cakes?” Dillon asked. “I’ve always wanted to go to a wedding with crab cakes.”

Troy snorted as he dialed Boomer’s number. “I guess you’ll have to ask.”


End file.
